“NASSCOM is working with key stakeholders to evolve the agenda for India’s balanced, inclusive growth.”

Q: What are the key trends that will shape the growth and evolution of the Indian IT-BPO industry within the country’s domestic market?

Indian enterprises are realising the power of technology in transforming their businesses. We have a unique advantage because we have no legacy systems. Some of the new trends like cloud computing, mobility and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), analytics and big data are going to change the way in which Indian enterprises deploy technology and run their businesses.

Q: What are the kinds of innovations that the sector needs to introduce for local customers?

There is a need for a variety of innovations to make technology adoption far more impactful. While many of the current solutions in these emerging areas address the needs of customers in Western markets, there is a requirement to innovate for Indian consumers and offer them relevant services and products. Innovations will also be required in the business models, where increasingly customers are wanting service vendors to be expertise-led and share the risks and rewards of technology deployment. The use of technology will also spread from the metros to Tier I and Tier II cities and towns and innovative go-to-market approaches need to be evolved for reaching these customers.

Q: What is NASSCOM doing to help its members evolve an agenda focused around the inclusive, balanced growth of India?

NASSCOM is working with key stakeholders to evolve the agenda for India’s balanced, inclusive growth. The benefits of technology should reach all levels of consumers, and citizen services offered 24x7 across the country, ought to help reduce the digital divide. NASSCOM is working closely with the government to make this happen. It is also trying to ensure that key programmes like the UID have far reaching impact, and reach their benefits to the right people. NASSCOM is also working to expand the domestic market so that the advantages of technology touch a larger number of enterprises, including the Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs).

Balanced development also requires the industry to be spread across a wider spectrum of locations, and NASSCOM is working with a number of stakeholders to make this a reality.

Q: What are some of the regulatory changes that NASSCOM will be calling for, to create a climate conducive for drawing ICT investment and making India a preferred IT-BPO investment destination?

The policy advocacy efforts of NASSCOM have always been driven by the need to create a globally competitive industry and it has been very successful in its efforts to drive this in close partnership with the government. NASSCOM will continue to drive policy approaches which will help the Indian IT-BPO industry maintain and strengthen its leadership. NASSCOM also believes that the next phase of growth for the industry will be catalysed by new segments, such as product organisations, internet businesses, mobility organisations, among others. NASSCOM is working to create a platform which will enable a number of these organisations to become successful. The nature of policies that NASSCOM will be lobbying for, range from capital for entrepreneurship to market development policies, to a legal framework for IP-related areas.

Q: What will NASSCOM work on in the year ahead, to spur capacity building, so that India can leverage its demographic dividend?

The industry has a huge advantage that it has scale, and there will be a large number of young people who will be entering the work force. NASSCOM is playing a key role in working with the academic world in enhancing curriculum and teaching methods. It is also working to promote innovative models of Public Private Partnerships for institutions focused on talent and capacity building for the IT-BPO industry. NASSCOM is also leading the way by creating testing platforms like NAC and NAC-Tech for the IT-BPO industry, that are helping in capacity expansion for the sector. The above efforts, coupled with initiatives to take the industry to Tier II and Tier III towns, will spur more balanced development. It will also enable IT-BPO organisations to leverage the huge pools of talent available outside the metros.